Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
Continental-continental divergent/constructive boundary Oceanic divergent boundary: mid-ocean ridge (cross-section/cut-away view). In plate tectonics, a divergent boundary or divergent plate boundary (also known as a constructive boundary or an extensional boundary) is a linear feature that exists between two tectonic plates that are moving away from each other.
This paradoxically results in divergence which was only incorporated in the theory of plate tectonics in 1970, but still results in net destruction when summed over major plate boundaries. [2] Divergent boundaries are areas where plates move away from each other, forming either mid-ocean ridges or rift valleys. These are also known as ...
Where the plates meet, their relative motion determines the type of plate boundary (or fault): convergent, divergent, or transform. The relative movement of the plates typically ranges from zero to 10 cm annually. [5] Faults tend to be geologically active, experiencing earthquakes, volcanic activity, mountain-building, and oceanic trench formation.
Where the plates meet, their relative motion determines the type of plate boundary (or fault): convergent, divergent, or transform. The relative movement of the plates typically ranges from zero to 10 cm annually. Faults tend to be geologically active, experiencing earthquakes, volcanic activity, mountain-building, and oceanic trench formation.
The Okinawa plate is bounded on the western side by the Okinawa Trough, a back arc basin and divergent boundary with the Yangtze plate. A section of the southern boundary between the Okinawa plate and the Philippine Sea plate is a former subduction zone that now accommodates oblique slip and was the location of the 1771 Great Yaeyama Tsunami .
Convergent and transform boundaries are responsible for most of the world's major (M w > 7) earthquakes. Convergent and divergent boundaries are also the site of most of the world's volcanoes, such as around the Pacific Ring of Fire. Most of the deformation in the lithosphere is related to the interaction between plates at or near plate boundaries.
The southerly side is a transform boundary with the Pacific plate along the Mendocino Fault. The westerly side is a divergent boundary with the Pacific plate forming the Gorda Ridge. This ridge provides morphological evidence of differing spreading rates, with the northern portion of the ridge being narrow, and the southern portion being wide. [4]
An interplate earthquake occurs at the boundary between two tectonic plates. Earthquakes of this type account for more than 90 percent of the total seismic energy released around the world. [1] If one plate is trying to move past the other, they will be locked until sufficient stress builds up to cause the plates to slip relative to each other.